Topics in this issue of Behind the Blue:
- Time to Spring Forward! Spring Event Registration Now Open
- National Nutrition Month® Toolkit Is Now Available
- Exciting Blueberry Milestones to Kick Off 2022
Registration is now open for Spring Forward 2022, Feb. 28-March 3! Choose to join us in person in Tampa or virtually, but be sure to save your seat today.
No matter how you participate, this event is your ticket to all the inspiring possibilities for blueberries! You’ll hear from exciting keynotes, learn alongside industry thought leaders and find out what’s in the works during USHBC and NABC committee meetings.
Plus, we’ve got a farm tour, happy hour, dinner and other networking opportunities to help you reconnect with your blueberry industry colleagues.
Take advantage of early-bird pricing when you register by Jan. 31!
Want to connect with our valuable blueberry industry audience? Reach out to Mandy Boarman at [email protected] to learn about sponsorship opportunities!
National Nutrition Month® Toolkit Is Now Available
This March, USHBC will kick off its first power period of 2022 by leveraging National Nutrition Month®, an annual nutrition education campaign created and developed by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. The campaign is grounded in making informed food choices, such as filling half of our plates with fruits and vegetables, and establishing healthy eating and physical activity practices that have a positive impact on overall well-being.
This year’s theme, Celebrate a World of Flavors, embraces global cultures, cuisines and inclusivity. Want to boost your marketing plans to capitalize on this key initiative? Start planning now! Tying into National Nutrition Month® will help drive demand and raise awareness of the versatility and health and nutrition benefits of blueberries. USHBC’s Nutrition Month Toolkit – tailored for the blueberry industry – features new resources, including tip sheets for both consumers and health professionals, social media content, digital ads and more. It arms you with the necessary tools to illustrate how nourishing blueberries can be. Add them to your marketing toolbox to drive demand for blueberries during National Nutrition Month® and all year long: ushbc.org/NutritionMonth
We’d love to hear how you’re planning to promote blueberries to your audiences for National Nutrition Month. Don’t forget to check out other industry resources to encourage consumers to Grab a Boost of Blue at ushbc.org/boostofblue.
Exciting Blueberry Milestones to Kick Off 2022
With only two weeks down, 2022 is off to a great start for blueberries with two exciting developments. First, “The Business of Blueberries” podcast reached another significant milestone this week by accumulating 30,000 total downloads since launching in June of 2020! Thank you to those of you who tune into our podcast, and please let us know if there is anything you’d like to see – or hear – in a future episode by dropping us a line at [email protected].
The podcast reached this milestone with the release of Episode 28, Season 2: Cort Brazelton and Working Together With the IBO. Kasey Cronquist, president of the USHBC, had Brazelton join the show to discuss the latest International Blueberry Organization (IBO) State of the Industry report and the future of global blueberry production.
Don’t miss an episode of “The Business of Blueberries” – subscribe to the podcast on your favorite podcast catcher, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Stitcher.
Here’s the second piece of big news: you can now send a boost of blue … through the mail! Last week, the United States Postal Service (USPS) issued a new 4 cent stamp featuring a cluster of highbush blueberries. According to the USPS, the blueberries definitive stamp will be sold in coils of 3,000 and 10,000, and in panes of 20. You can find them at post office locations or online at usps.com/shopstamps.
The USPS captured the value and popularity of blueberries right from the opening words of its press release: Blueberries are culinary wonders. Art director Derry Noyes designed this stamp using an existing illustration by John Burgoyne. The release also features some background on the blueberry:
Today, the highbush blueberry has become the most widely cultivated blueberry. Highbush blueberries are grown extensively in Maine, Michigan, Georgia, Florida, Oregon, Washington, New Jersey, California, North Carolina and other states.
Learn more by reading the full press release here.